East London's Ilitha wooden housing beneficiaries get new proper homes

SEPTEMBER 8, 2016

After years of waiting for safe and comfortable homes, Ilitha Township wooden housing beneficiaries, just outside East London, have moved into their new houses, built for them by the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality.

One of the beneficiaries, Nothozamile Ngxaza, said that she is grateful for the initiative after waiting for so many years for a decent house.

“We have endured this for many years staying in depilated houses. It seems as if this was never going to happen but the Executive Mayor has confirmed that it will happen. I have lived in that wooden house for 35 years,” said Ngxaza.

The depilated wooden structures which were built by the then government of the Ciskei will be demolished and replaced by 264 newly built housing units. The construction of the houses will start mid-November with a budget of R27 million set aside for the project.

However, the project has been experiencing a lot of problems including the non-deliverance by the appointed contractor.

Ward Councillor Thozamile Norexe said, “This project started in 2013 and should have been completed in 2014 but out of 262 houses only 132 houses have been built.”

Representative from the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality's Human Settlements section Mthunzi Ngonyama said, “In Phase 2 we’re expecting 373 housing units but so far 273 have been done. The outstanding 100 will be completed when the newly appointed contractor starts with the construction of Phase 3.

"The first contractor was fired in June as a result of poor performance."

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